


Swifter, Faster, Watching, Knowing

by AliceInIdolLand



Category: Love Live! School Idol Festival (Video Game), Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: F/F, Unnamed characters - Freeform, semi-character analysis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-14
Updated: 2017-10-14
Packaged: 2019-01-17 01:30:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12354630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliceInIdolLand/pseuds/AliceInIdolLand
Summary: You was faster than most. Yoshiko could watch better than most.





	Swifter, Faster, Watching, Knowing

You was fast. It was quite obvious that she was that she was, her being at the pool almost every second. The water always flowed over her body as she swiftly swam, to and fro. Although diving was her thing, her swimming speeds were never anything to laugh at either.

The water was her safety. There, she could go as fast as she wanted, pushing through the particles of water. Propelling herself ahead, her thoughts would disappear. All her worries were behind her, so long as she swam fast enough. That was what she believed with every fiber of her being.

Diving was safety as well. If it was chasing her she’d jump, twisting and turning before ending up with her body pin straight. The water would welcome her with a barely noticeable splash. With it slowly enveloping her in its watery cushion, she'd relax. Then she’d sit under the water, at the very bottom. With the floor of the pool underneath her, she’d welcome the silence. That bubbly water sound and her own breath were the only things she could hear. It was soundless to the point of brilliance, and a most welcome change from the rest of her life.

 

* * *

 

Even when she wasn’t in the water, You always went fast. It was in her catchphrase, after all, so she always went full speed ahead. Still, with swift steps from here to there, she’d zoom along to wherever she was going. If she slowed down at all, the worries would catch up to her. They’d drown her in a way her beloved water never would.

What was behind her was monstrous. A gigantic collection of hopes and failed dreams. A distorted being of guilt and worry and all the things she’d rather leave behind. The monster was the feelings that flared up when she saw that face, the only she was always looking at. It was also the immense horror she felt when she looked at that other person and knew she’d break their heart. Those cursed feelings, those cursed worries, they chased her. It was a flurry of everything she wanted most but didn’t deserve, everything she feared most but needed to live. You knew it. She wasn’t strong, she knew that. So she ran. She ran and ran, lest it caught up and smothered her.

It was what she could, what she couldn’t, all she should be and what she shouldn’t. It was her be all and end all. And if it never caught up to her, she could pretend it wasn't there.

 

* * *

 

Yoshiko watched You for the longest time. She was beautiful, that second year.You was stunning, popular, completely unreachable. So, Yoshiko settled for watching.

Watching did wonders. The once curious habit of Yoshiko’s had turned into knowing. Knowing exactly how You tilted her head when confused, the way her eyes shone when amused. She learned how You's eyes crinkled when she laughed and cried, as well as the exact stretch of her truly happy smile. Yoshiko knew You, knew all she was. And You never noticed Yoshiko. She was too busy looking forward and running away.

 

* * *

 

And then they were idols, shining idols on that stage. You discovered Yoshiko, noticed her as a person. She was too busy running to do much more than that. Yoshiko didn’t mind.

 

* * *

 

Now that Yoshiko was closer, she could feel the difference between herself and You. The chasm between them was clear, although only she seemed to notice this fact. You was always two steps ahead, speeding along as swiftly as she could. She stopped for no one, for nothing. Looking back only occasionally, she'd start doubling her speed soon after. She was unreachable, always just the littlest bit too far, making it so no one could catch up. Even if you reached out a hand to grab hold of her, you wouldn’t ever be able to catch her.

So Yoshiko settled with watching. And watch she did, as the one You always looked at walked towards another; as the one who wanted You slowly turned to face another. She watched as You herself slowed, her once swift progress coming to a dead stop. She still only watched as You herself was smothered and drowned and crushed under the pressure of everything she had run from as it caught up to her.

Only when she saw You struggle did she offer her hand. 


End file.
